The Journey

As someone who is interested in both the study and the creation side of art, Italy is the perfect place to see the merging of a rich historical background with the contemporary art scene. Italy has been a center for the arts throughout the Roman Empire, the Renaissance, and the Baroque period, and its museums also host iconic pieces from Ancient Greece. The opportunity to see these works in person is valuable from both an art historian’s and an artist’s perspective. I have found that studying art history, becoming familiar with the progression of art and the role it has had in societies since ancient times, gives me a new perspective on the purpose of contemporary art. Placing artists today within this historical context leads to a broader understanding of the human need to create, where creators are not only expressing themselves but are also continuing a deeply rooted tradition.

            While in Italy, I hope to learn about art from specifically the Roman Empire, the Renaissance, and the Baroque periods and experience it first-hand through museums, churches, and architecture. I will also visit galleries and studios to see work from modern Italian artists. I want to study the relationship between “ancient” and contemporary art and understand how an artist reconciles the celebrated and sometimes overshadowing achievements of the past with the need to create original work. I will be keeping a sketchbook to record notes and drawings of the places we visit, and I will use these as inspiration for my own pieces.

            By the end of X-Term, I hope to have a sketchbook full of my experiences, several pieces (or at least the beginnings of them) inspired by my time in Italy, and a joint blog with Maria and Kendall with journal entries and photos of where we’ve been.